ONIGIRI

Canada is a major producer, exporter and importer of an immense variety of agricultural and food products ranging from processed foods with global value chains to local, farm-based value chains.  In this section, I share 3 of my research insights and assess to what extent my recipe can be made from Canadian agricultural and food products.

Overall, the top ten rice producers of the world are all located in Asia which reflects the significance of rice in Asian diets. The Shirakiku rice used in this recipe is a product of Wismettac Asian Foods, Inc. and was grown in Northern California. There is no data available for Canada’s rice production in 2014. White rice is widely available in any supermarket.

The nori was produced and packaged by Yamako company (the processors), and sold by Nico-Nico Nori (wholesalers) to supermarkets (retailers). The processing procedure includes stretching, drying, baking, seasoning, and packaging. Among the world, Japan ranks third in seaweed production at 10% of the world’s supply. China ranks first, followed by Korea. Roasted nori sheets can be found in any Asian supermarket, or some international food aisles in Western supermarkets.

The brand of umeboshi I used was Shirakiku; the same brand as the rice. It is an imported product of Japan and distributed by Wismattec Asian Foods, Inc. based in Richmond, B.C. You can easily find umeboshi in the refrigerated section of any Asian supermarket. Commercial production has not yet been seen in Canada, which is why they are only imported from Japan.

In summary, none of the ingredients I needed are produced in Canada. However, these ingredients can be purchased without much difficulty. Asian supermarkets will almost always carry each ingredient needed to make Onigiri. I omitted shio konbu and smoked salmon simply because I had only planned to make four variations.